How Biden Can Expand Healthcare Access in His First 100 Days.
How Biden Can Expand Healthcare Access in His First 100 Days
With or without Congress, the new administration has tools at its disposal to quickly improve coverage during the current crisis and beyond, according to a new commentary by Paul Shafer and Nicole Huberfeld.
On January 20, Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States in the midst of the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis. And although Democrats will also control Congress, bitter divisions and a razor-thin Senate majority will likely pose challenges to Biden’s agenda.
However, the next administration does have tools at its disposal to improve healthcare access in the first 100 days of Biden’s presidency, according to a new commentary by two School of Public Health researchers published in JAMA Health Forum.
“Even with a legislative logjam, the incoming administration can act swiftly to address the health and economic crises facing the nation,” write Paul Shafer, assistant professor of health law, policy & management, and Nicole Huberfeld, professor of health law, ethics & human rights.
“These executive acts could begin rebuilding a more universal and more accessible healthcare system.”
Shafer and Huberfeld outline three key areas where Biden could take immediate action.
Donald Trump used many different tools to undermine the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and, although Shafer and Huberfeld write that there is much rebuilding to do, the new administration will be able to reverse many executive acts to help the growing number of unemployed Americans sign up for coverage, including reinstating funding for marketplace advertising.
Biden can also strengthen Medicaid, withdrawing Trump policies designed to weaken the program, including the pending move by two states toward block grant funding. The new administration can also reject new waiver applications from states seeking to implement work requirements for Medicaid, or lockouts for failure to pay out-of-pocket costs. And, Shafer and Huberfeld write, Biden should reimplement Obama-era guidance instructing states that they cannot withhold Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood.
A third “easy choice,” Shafer and Huberfeld write, is to revisit the Trump administration’s reinterpretion of the Section 1557 rule, which weakened patient protections against discrimination under the ACA.
“The legislative priorities that President Biden chooses to pursue immediately will have unusual importance given the unprecedented crisis,” they write. “Given the hard hit that populations with higher risk [for COVID-19] have experienced during the last 4 years, the new administration must act swiftly.”
Read the full commentary here.